Related:

Diplomatic pressure to extend must-carry beyond election

TBILISI, DFWatch – A working group of ambassadors in Georgia calls on the government to extend the term of the temporary must-carry and must-offer principles to beyond election day.

UNDP on Wednesday released a statement after the meeting of the working group in order to review a final amendment to the election legislation in Georgia.

According to the statement, the ambassadors welcome the latest amendments, calling it positive as the population will have the opportunity to receive diverse information.

But they also call on the government to ‘once again review the possibility to extend the term of must-carry and must-offer obligation beyond election day.”

The principles of must-carry and must-offer envisage applying obligation on all cable network operator companies to carry the signals of all broadcasters in their network, while prohibiting broadcasters from switching off their signals from the network in a certain period.

Parliament adopted these changes. As the law stands, it foresees implementing the principles from the time a date is announced for the election and until election day, which means a period of about 60 days.

The campaign This Affects You Too, which contributed to the drafting of the law, demands that the rules are left in force beyond election day.